UPDATE: Figures confirmed VIP did not leave country broke
But Hon Fahie continued to challenge the mathematics saying that the numbers just don’t add up to support the National Democratic Party (NDP) Government’s claim that the previous VIP Government left the country broke.
Hon Fahie had posed the written questions towards the Premier with a view to clearing up what he called misinformation on the part of the present Government.
“Madam Speaker we made an address on December 17, 2011 and spoke of the financial situation as we met it on our assumption of office,” the Hon Premier said in his response to Hon Fahie during the Seventh sitting of the Third Session of the Second House of Assembly last Friday June 13, 2014.
“That statement explained that the projected total income for the year was to be $268 million… inclusive of an anticipated $42 million from the Financial Services Commission (FSC). Notwithstanding the projected $268 million in income we also anticipated a deficit of $40 million. In actuality the income from the FSC between November and the end of the year was $52 million, some $10 million more than was anticipated. This left an actual deficit of around $30 million. Contributing to that deficit was approximately $15 million for capital projects contracts that were given out in the latter part of the previous administration,” he said.
The Hon Premier explained that the projects were binding and the Government of the Virgin Islands was therefore obligated to honour them.
“Madame Speaker, we have been able over the course of the past two years eliminate these outstanding bills, a bill of approximately $13 million by the end of 2013,” said the Hon Premier in his response. “In fact one of the last major contracts was [dealt with] about a month ago,” he said.
As a follow up, Hon Fahie asked for the Premier to produce a breakdown of these figures, “because Madame Speaker, based on the Premier’s answer there was going to be a $40 million deficit but that is not how I remembered it. His speech said that the country was left broke, some $40 million in the red during that speech in early December [2011],” said Hon Fahie.
$30 million or $40 million?
“Now based on the math that I am hearing when that $52 million [from FSC] came in instead of being $12 million up we are still $30 million in the red. Madame Speaker I don’t get that kind of math that is being done,” he said. “And on top of that I would need a breakdown of what formed part of this quote unquote $40 million in the red,” he said, pointing out that the Government at one time referred to $30 million and at other times to $40 million.
The Premier said that the breakdown was provided to Hon Fahie and that it was “all here Madame Speaker.”
But Hon Fahie responded, “Madame Speaker I don’t have that information here.” He asked whether the Hon Premier was saying that in three years they were able to take care of $30 million debt and still maintain the Government with the regular expenses and revenue.
“I still don’t get the math where the revenue that came in was $52 million. The claim when the Premier first took office was that it was in excess of $40 million…now we hearing $30 million. I want to know from the Premier why the question cannot be answered in totality in the way it is asked?” he asked.
Hon Fahie noted that even with the deficit Government was still able to put monies into the reserve fund and do many other things. “That doesn’t sound like a $30 million deficit,” Hon Fahie said.
$73 million received between November and December 2011
Following the Hon Premier’s response about the total monies received – both from the FSC and from other sources – between November 2011 and December 2011, Hon Fahie asked, “So when you add the $21 million and change to the $52 million [from the FSC], Madame Speaker you have $73 million that would have been received in revenue by the Government of the Virgin Islands [from November to December 2011. Is [the Hon Premier] maintaining that those monies could not have paid for any perceived bills that were left over from the last administration and still have money to spend?”
But the Premier responded, “Madam Speaker the Hon Member knows that there are other regular monthly expenses such as salaries to be taken care of.”
Hon Fahie said, “There was only a month and a half left and based on the numbers the monies received would have been enough, but we’ll leave that there for now Madam Speaker.”
See previous article published on June 13, 2014:
Hon. Fahie tells NDP ‘put up or shut up’ on VIP left country broke spin!
The First District Representative Honourable Andrew A. Fahie said it’s the National Democratic Party who has the country broke and left it broke
ROAD TOWN, Tortola, VI - Months after their victory at the polls following the 2011 general elections the National Democratic Party (NDP) took to the airways in the first time we heard from the Premier and Minister of Finance to tell the people of the Virgin Islands that the previous Virgin Islands Party (VIP) Government of former Premier Honourable Ralph T. O’Neal OBE, had left the country broke.
However, at today’s June 13, 2014 Sitting of the House of Assembly the Premier Dr. the Honourable D. Orlando Smith will have to provide the people with the proof. A question is being posed by First District Representative Honourable Andrew A. Fahie on the topic.
Hon. Fahie the former Minister for Education and Culture in the VIP Administration is to ask the Premier to furnish the Honourable House with a detailed breakdown of this claim affixed with the amounts attributed to each component that forms part of such claim inclusive of the dates of when each such expense was incurred.
Put up or shut up!
Speaking exclusively to this news site Hon. Fahie said the current Administration continues to use ‘The VIP left the country broke’ as a crutch for not completing most of the programmes as promised during the 2011 elections to the people of the Territory. They continue to say without producing the facts that the VIP left the country in excess of $40 million dollars in the red.
However, according to the First District Representative, “over the last three years as you listen to them the figure that they call continues to fluctuate. This in itself tells me that there is no concrete evidence that their accusation has any merit …because the VIP did not leave the country broke.”
Hon. Fahie further stated that in the last Sitting of the House of Assembly (HoA), the Minister of Finance in answering a question under the question and answer segment stated that he had in excess of $18 million dollars in unpaid bills or vouchers in the Treasury at that time.
When asked how much cash he had for the country available to pay bills he stated that he had just over $5 million. “This means that the country would be in excess of $12 million in the red or simply put the country is broke, hence why their cheques most likely were bouncing rather than the explanation that was given,” the four term Legislator stated.
Tell the truth NDP- Fahie
In his defense of the VIP Hon. Fahie said when the Premier was pressed on how he would deal with this matter in the same Sitting stated that the Financial Services Commission revenue will soon be received and that will take care of that overdraft in excess of $12 million.
When pressed even further according to Fahie, Premier Smith stated that that was the regular mode of operation for the Government in terms of running an overdraft knowing that the monies from financial services will come in to take care of the overdraft. In simple words, he said that the Government of the day and of the past always ran on overdraft knowing that it will be covered by the monies coming in from financial services.
“The Minister of Finance is correct” the seasoned Legislator in the HoA since 1999 stated. “But he cannot win the argument on both sides. It cannot be true for him when he is in office but false for any other Government especially, the immediate past VIP Government when they out of office.”
Hon. Fahie argued in his interview that every Government that leaves office will leave some unpaid bills because Government continues. “It does not stop when someone is not elected or a Government does not return. Bills could include the public service payments, of course they will have to be paid; projects that have already started, they will have to be paid, projects that were about to be started, of course they will have to be paid once the new Government comes in,” he explained.
“Right after the last Administration left office, in less than one month the financial services money was received by Government and it was no effort of the new Administration or any initiative of theirs,” Fahie said.
The Former Education and Culture Minister Fahie stated that it was money that was coming regardless of who was in power at that time. It was in excess of $50 million. Therefore, it would have taken care of any remaining bills that the last Administration would have incurred.
This accusation according to Hon. Fahie was never heavily challenged by the Virgin Islands Party and it should have but now it must be because this Government continues to use a myth to try to justify why they did not accomplish some of their goals.
NDP left the country broke over hospital project- Fahie
In addition, the First District Representative told our news site that he has stated many times and they would “like for me to stop stating this; one of the largest impediments to the Treasury over the last 8 years has been the hospital project the way it was financed.”
He explained that it was a $100 million project signed for $64 million by the NDP Administration in 2007 when they only secured approximately $40 million from the Social Security Board but the majority of the other funds needed were never secured from the banks.
The paperwork to have it completed was not done, he continued, “we inherited the Government and it took two years to get those paperwork completed. Those works should have been completed before the contract was signed so that the funds to do the project would have been fully secured. They were not and as a result the first two years of the VIP Administration the funds to continue the project were used from the Treasury.”
Hon. Fahie went on to say, “we were assured by the Ministry of Finance personnel when the money was received from the bank it would have returned to the Consolidated Fund, to later find out that it cannot be done.”
NDP reckless spending, VIP prudent- Fahie
In his passionate interview speaking hours before today’s HoA Sitting the VIP Opposition Member told our news site that “if any cash flow problems were created it was not as a result of any doing of the VIP. It would have had to be because of the reckless and careless manner in which that project was financed, when taxpayers carried the burden not once, not twice but a multiplicity of times due to the loans that were incurred and the monies never returning to the Consolidated Fund in a timely manner.”
Hence Hon, Fahie said it is time for this accusation that sounds good, that the NDP continues to use that “we left the country broke,” to stop, since it has “no merit, it is not true”.
“If anytime we are broke it is now and it is because of the conduct of the Administration spending money on projects start as one amount and in the millions now,” he stated.
Leader of the Opposition Honourable Ralph T. O’Neal OBE in an interview with this news site in 2012 also strongly denounced the VIP left the country broke claims and recorded that when he took office in 2007 he had to personally guarantee a bank draft for the BVI Tourist Board for over $30 million dollars left by the NDP Administration.
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36 Responses to “UPDATE: Figures confirmed VIP did not leave country broke”
It is ridiculous and absurd for the detail of the most vital segment o
Segment of a country's gov, its finances,be based on hesayand hesay.
What do the financial reports of theVIP indicate..were there any ..if not, then Andrew and his party has no credibility whatsoever...let the record or as in this case, the absence of records speak for themselves.
Ous and bizarre for the most voital part of agov,namely the finances, be left uptpheasayandhe say....